Community-based screening for pre-hypertension among military active duty personnel

To determine the prevalence of both pre-hypertension and hypertension, and risk factors associated with the newly diagnosed Saudi military active duty personnel. A community-based cross-sectional screening of 1238 Saudi military active duty service personnel was conducted during the period from September to December 2007 at the military units of Taif region, western Saudi Arabia. Screening tools included self-administrated questionnaire, general physical examination, anthropometric measurements, and assessment of blood pressure. All participants were Saudi males. Their age ranged from +/- 7.02. By applying the Joint National Committee on prevention, detection, evaluation, and treatment of high hypertension criteria, 214 [17.3%] were considered pre-hypertensive. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that obesity as measured by body mass index [odds ratio [OR]=2.71, confidence interval [CI]: 1.39-5.28], positive family history [OR=1.46, CI: 1.03-2.06], ever smoking [OR=1.45, CI: 1.05-2.02], and increased waist circumference [OR=1.04, CI: 1.02-1.06] were the significant predictors of hypertension among military active duty personnel. Pre-hypertension is a common hidden problem and it predicts the development of frank hypertension. Findings of the current study support the recommendation of lifestyle modification for pre-hypertension patients. However, further prospective studies are required to determine the role of pharmacotherapy in pre-hypertension

Anemia and nutritional status of schoolchildren living at Saudi high altitude area

To estimate the prevalence and possible risk factors for anemia and abnormal anthropometric measurements among schoolchildren in Al-Hada Area, Taif, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. We conducted the study between January and April, 2005 at Al-Hada area. A nested case-control study was conducted to estimate risk factors for anemia and abnormal anthropometric measurements. From 5 schools, 513 students were recruited. The mean hemoglobin concentration was 13.4 +/- 0.9 g/dL, while the prevalence of anemia was 11.6% and 15.5% based on hemoglobin and hematocrit values. At the same time, underweight affected 14.2% of the students, and stunting affected 12.2%. Moreover, 9.8% of the students were obese and 13.8% suffered from wasting. Most of the victims of anemia and erroneous anthropometric measurements were females, except for wasting which was more prevalent among males. Anemia is highly prevalent among these schoolchildren, which is seriously affecting the growth of 6-14 year-old children. Similarly, malnutrition seems to be a significant health problem among those children as estimated by anthropometric measurements, where all forms of abnormal body measurements affected at least 9.8% of the studied group. An in-depth investigation of the etiological factors of iron deficiency and malnutrition is urgently needed, and suitable nutrition-education and iron supplementation programs are recommended